Harlem Internship

I intern at the Mount Sinai Adolescent Health Center, that provides comprehensive health care and support services to youth from 10 to 24 years old. At the beginning of the internship, I was assigned to serve the Harlem community which has high proportions of Black and Hispanic residents who have low socioeconomic status. Many of the Harlem residents live below the Federal Poverty Level and spend more than 30% of their monthly gross income on rent. Harlem has higher unemployment rates than New York City in general. In addition, Harlem has a high percentage of people without a high school diploma. As a result, many of the Harlem residents have no credential to get high-paying jobs. The primary languages spoken at home are Spanish, French and Chinese. The majority of the Harlem residents has low English proficiency.
For example, many of the historical buildings are being replaced by million-dollar condos. Quality supermarkets, clinics, fitness centers, and libraries are built only when the demographics began to shift in the community. In addition, prices for rent begin to rise. As a result, many residents cannot afford the rent and they are pushed out of their community where they have been living for decades. Another social issue that Harlem faces is health disparities. Harlem has disproportionately high rates of chronic disease and mortality due to health disparities. During the internship, I have learned, that one of the main reasons for health disparities in Harlem considers a lack of information about available resources in the local